How I'm living now
by Falcons-Tears
Summary: SEQUEL TO PERFECTLY BLIND: Morgan and Reid are back, but of course problems arise. Reid's eyes are still not okay and in addition to that, someone tries to come between the couple...  SLASH, established Reid/Morgan relationship
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** Um yeah, here comes the promised sequel to Perfectly Blind. I know it has been a long time and I've promised the sequel much earlier, but I was kind of discouraged by the lack of reviews for the last chapter of Perfectly Blind, so writing the story has kind of been pushed back for other stories *sigh* But now I found the unfinished first chapter and decided that I liked Perfectly Blind too much to just abandon the sequel... and I really hope you will like the sequel too *smiles*

Oh and before anyone gets confused, the old case I refer to in this chapter has never happened and doesn't exist...

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Comments would of course be most appreciated *puppy dog eyes*

And please keep in mind that English isn't my native language, so I really hope there aren't too many grammar mistakes *smiles sheepishly*

Most of all, have fun reading the sequel of Perfectly Blind: How I'm living now

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**Summary:** SEQUEL TO PERFECTLY BLIND: Morgan and Reid are back, but of course problems arise. Reid's eyes are still not okay and in addition to that, someone tries to come between the couple... THIS IS SLASH (REID/MORGAN), just so that you're warned...

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**Disclaimer: **None of the CM characters belong to me… I just borrowed them for this little story… my OC'S do belong to me though… this story doesn't mean to offend anybody… this is just for fun… and not for money either...

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><p><strong>How I'm living now<strong>

**Chapter 1**

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><p>.<p>

"Hotch, we have a new case."

Jennifer Jareau, better known as JJ, poked her head into Aaron Hotchner's office, a thick pack of files in her hand.

Hotch sighed and nodded.

"Gather the team in the conference room, I'll be with you shortly," he answered and closed the file he had been reading on his desk, while JJ only nodded and was gone again.

Then he took his suit jacket from the back of his chair and slowly walked over to the conference room where his team was already gathered.

He let his eyes travel over Penelope Garcia, Emily Prentiss, David Rossi and JJ, before his eyes came to rest on the two newest members of the team.

They had been assigned to this team for four months now and so Hotch had gotten to know both of them very well.

There was Richard Mannings, a seasoned profiler that had been temporarily reassigned from another team as long as Derek and Spencer were on leave.

The man was in his mid-forties and had proofed to be a valuable addition to the team.

Richard had also fit in easily, because the rest of the team had already known him, because they had worked together with his team on several occasions.

Right now Richard had his nose already in the file, reading with interest what the case was about, occasionally running a hand through his slightly gray hair.

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Hotch then looked at Hunter McBright.

He was young and fresh from academy and Strauss had thought that Hotch's team was the right one to prepare him for what being a profiler was all about.

By now Hotch wasn't sure if it was an honor that Strauss seemed to think that they were capable of doing it or if it was punishment.

Because, yes, Hunter had graduated with good grades and from what Hotch had gathered until now, he would be a great profiler one day when he had more experience and training.

No, the biggest problem with McBright was his attitude. He was cocky, bordering on arrogant and he let people around him feel when he thought they were beneath him.

Hunter was a good looking young man, blonde hair, bright blue eyes and a nice smile, well at least when there wasn't that sneer present in it.

Why he acted like that, well, Hotch hadn't been able to figure that out yet, no matter if he was a profiler.

At first he had thought that it was, because Hunter had been unsure coming onto a team that had been working together for years now and had tried to hide his insecurities behind his attitude.

But that couldn't be the reason, because the team had done everything to make it easier for him to fit in, but Hunter had never been interested in joining the group outside of work.

Every once in a while Hotch considered asking Chief Strauss to assign Hunter to another team, but he had always reconsidered, wanting to give the younger man a fair chance.

And then Morgan or Reid had called, asking if everything was okay with the team and Hotch had always said yes, because he didn't want to worry them too much, because with Spencer's treatment they had enough to worry about.

Besides, none of the team had really complained about Hunter, because they all knew his assigment to the team was only temporary.

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Hotch sighed a little and ran a hand through his hair, before he nodded to Garcia to start the briefing, since JJ had started to profile more and more ever since Morgan and Reid had left for Germany.

And she was quite good at it, so Aaron let her and Garcia was more than capable of handling JJ's role in the briefings.

Garcia gave him a small smile and then she turned serious, putting seven photographs of young women up on the screen.

She pointed to the last photo.

"This is Julia Reynolds, 21, found dead in her apartment yesterday night. She was repeatedly stabbed in her arms and legs, but cause of death was suffocation. She is the seventh victim in the last three months. All young women between 20 and 30, single, stabbed in the arms and legs and suffocated with a plastic bag," Garcia explained shortly, because the details were in the case files, so it was unnecessary for her to repeat all of them.

Rossi looked at the pictures, deep in thought and then he murmured: "Somehow the MO is familiar, but I can't really place it."

The rest of the team looked at him and they all waited for Rossi to say more, or to get up and go into his office to look into one of the many books about past serial killers.

And Dave was already halfway standing in his chair, when suddenly a voice from the doorway interrupted them.

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"St. Louis, 1982, Mark Whitman murdered eleven woman, same MO."

The voice was familiar and huge grins spread on everyone's faces, well except Hunter's, while they whipped around, all looking at the entrance to the conference room.

"Spence!" JJ nearly squealed and was out of her chair in a second and hugged Dr. Spencer Reid, who had appeared in the doorway totally out of the blue and totally unexpected, two months before anyone had expected him back.

"Derek!"

Garcia's own happy squeal mixed with JJ and she too was out of her chair before any of the others could react and threw herself at her chocolate Adonis.

Morgan smiled and kissed Garcia's forehead.

"Hey baby girl, I see you missed me," he smiled and then looked at the rest of the team, before putting a hand on Reid's shoulder.

JJ had let go of the young genius by now and looked him up and down.

He did look a lot better than when they had left, she decided, but what she didn't like were the huge sunglasses on his eyes and the white cane in his hand.

It was an indicator that Spencer's eyesight still wasn't back, or at least not completely back.

But she decided not to comment on it for now.

Hotch, Emily, Rossi and even Richard had stood up and had come over to the two men.

Emily hugged both and Dave patted both men on the shoulder and Hotch firmly shook Derek's hand before giving Reid's shoulder a squeeze.

"Why are you back already?" he questioned, totally forgetting about the briefing for now.

But he immediately realized that it was a sensitive question, because Spencer tensed and Derek put a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"Not now, Hotch," he mouthed and Aaron only nodded.

To change the subject, he quickly asked: "So, I know we're technically on leave, but can we help with the new profile somehow. We've heard enough and if you'd just give us a file."

The rest of the team smiled and Emily was about to hand a file to Morgan, when Hotch stopped her.

"I'm sorry Derek, but I can't do that. As you said, you're on leave and Chief Strauss hasn't cleared you yet," he explained with regret in his voice.

He saw Spencer's face fall even more and he quickly hastened to add: "But you've helped already by pointing out the St. Louis case. Now we have a good starting point."

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Reid smiled a little and Morgan did too.

Hotch could see that the team was itching to ask more questions why they were back and why they hadn't told them.

"Why don't you go to the break room, get yourselves a coffee and we'll have a quick talk once the briefing is over and before we board the plane?"

Derek nodded.

"Come on, Pretty Boy," he said and both men were about to leave, when suddenly Hunter, who had now recovered from his surprise, appeared beside the two men.

He barely spared Reid a glance, but he gave Morgan a big smile and extended his hand.

"Hello, you must be Derek Morgan. I've heard a lot about you and I'm really pleased to meet you. I'm Hunter McBright."

Morgan eyed the young man in front of him a little confused, but he returned the smile a little awkwardly, because Garcia hadn't really talked about the young man.

"Nice to meet you too," he said and then he put an arm around Spencer's shoulders, because the young genius had turned his head towards them and since he still wasn't able to see, he had no idea what was going on.

"This is Dr. Spencer Reid," he introduced his boyfriend.

Hunter only nodded, but he didn't really make a move to greet the young genius, who only gave an awkward wave, hoping it was somehow in the right direction.

Morgan frowned at the attitude Hunter showed Spencer, but then he shrugged it off for now, deciding he had other things to worry about.

"Well, we'll let you get on with the briefing now and if you need our help, we'll be in the break room," he told his team and gave them all a small smile, before pulling Spencer a little closer and leaving the room.

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What Morgan didn't notice were the appreciative looks Hunter threw him, or better his ass and frankly, if he hadn't noticed, he wouldn't have cared.

But Garcia of course noticed and a frown came onto her face and she decided that she'd keep an eye on Hunter McBright from now on.

The last thing Reid and Morgan needed was someone trying to make trouble for them, and by the way Hunter had acted towards Morgan and especially the cold and dismissive way he had treated Spencer gave her the creeps.

She might not be a profiler, but she had common sense and she swore to herself that no one would mess with her chocolate muffin and her baby genius if she could help it.

How much her help would be needed in the next weeks, well she didn't have the slightest idea right now, but she would soon find out.

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to be continued, if you're interested...


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Okay, I'm sorry that it took me so long to get the second chapter out, but I was kind of stuck. That's also the reason why this is sort of a filler chapter to explain a few things *smiles sheepishly*

I hope that's okay for you and you will like it none the less and I promise there'll be more action in the next chapter *g*

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Comments, as always, are most appreciated *smiles*

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And I'm so happy that you seemed to like the first chapter so much, because I really didn't expect you to still care about this story. *smiles happily*

Thank you to **BloodRoseNinja, CMAli 1, Jae Ar, anonymous, everything-is-eninalus, Jebeth, Janus** (I addressed why Morgan and Reid weren't allowed to help in this chapter), **omgnotagain, lilfiftyfour, pipinheart, LIGHTNSHADOWS, nyesha, IanJa, slery, dtessari, RogueStorm84, anonymous2, Moon Crescent Neko, 68luvcarter, CALLEN37, cristina reid, X5-549, GeminiSoul01, Spirit Of Soon To Be, Catnatural, garnettac, wonkafrog, anonymous3, crazydumdum, Growl Snarl, Dee2436, creep000 and Velvet** Killer for all your kind comments *hugs you all*

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Now enjoy reading *smiles*

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**Disclaimer:** None of the CM characters belong to me… I just borrowed them for this little story… my OC'S do belong to me though… this story doesn't mean to offend anybody… this is just for fun… and not for money either...

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><p><strong>Chapter 2<strong>

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><p>.<p>

"Morgan, can I talk to you in my office for a moment?"

Hotch poked his head into the break room and Reid and Morgan, who had been sitting there and drinking a coffee for about twenty minutes, turned their head towards them.

Hotch noticed how Reid stiffened, obviously not ready to be left alone, but the Unit Chief had expected that, so he had brought JJ and Garcia with him, so that they could take care of the young man until he and Morgan had finished talking.

Sure, what he had to say to Derek was concerning Spencer too, but as long as Hotch had no idea what exactly was wrong with Reid and why they were back already, he thought it was better to first talk to Derek. The man would know how to handle the situation and what exactly Reid was ready to hear.

"Sure Hotch," Morgan told him when he saw JJ and Garcia standing behind Hotch, looking ready to pounce on Reid and probably mother-hen him to death. So he at least knew his boyfriend would be in good hands. He stood up from his chair, took Spencer's hand and squeezed it gently.

"I'll be back soon, baby boy and then we can go home, okay? Garcia and JJ will keep you company while I'm gone. I bet you won't even miss me," he told the younger man with humor in his voice and was rewarded with a slight, hesitant smile, before Reid straightened his shoulders.

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"I'll be okay, Derek," Spencer gave back, trying not to sound too annoyed that the team and his lover were starting to treat him like he was made out of glass again. He had thought that they were over that by now. Sure, he could understand it, since the had come back to the States way earlier than expected and Reid felt a little uneasy when he thought about the reasons why, but still...

"I'll be back before you know it," Morgan gave back, kissed Spencer on the forehead and then he followed Hotch out of the break room towards Hotch's office. He had to smile when he heard Garcia asking Spencer all kinds of questions, some of them were probably going to be kind of inappropriate and he was mentally preparing himself for a talk with Garcia later on.

But right now he had other things to discuss.

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"Take a seat," Aaron invited once they had reached the office of the Unit Chief and Hotch had closed the door behind them. Morgan took a deep breath and then sat down in one of the chairs in front of Hotch's desk. Hotch himself was seated behind his desk only seconds later. There was a moment of silence, both men obviously not too sure how to start this conversation.

Hotch finally ran a hand through his hair and told Derek: "I'm sorry that I couldn't let you help with the profile, but after you were gone some things changed and I fear that your early return has only complicated things."

Morgan leaned back in the chair and nodded slowly.

"I figured that you had another reason that Reid and I couldn't help with the profile than us still being on leave. I mean, you let Gideon help without hesitation and he wasn't even part of the BAU anymore," Derek admitted, because he was a profiler after all and he had seen the look on Aaron's face when he had forbidden them to help.

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Hotch gave a light smile. He should have expected that they'd figure it out quite quickly. But that didn't make this any easier.

"Strauss has been on my back for quite a while and I feared that letting you work on the profile without actually being cleared to work would only make things worse. Strauss wanted reasons why you went with Spencer and I tried to stall for a while, but she figured it out herself. So essentially she knows that you two are together. And she is contemplating moving one of you to another team," Hotch started and Morgan immediately started protesting: "That's not necessary. Spencer and I will still be able to do our jobs. I mean, I know for a fact that there are couples in other teams as well."

Hotch scratched the back of his head and realization dawned in Morgan's eyes.

"It's because we're both men," he concluded and even though Hotch didn't answer him, he gave the younger agent a look that said it all. Morgan clenched his fists.

"Great, so if one of us were a girl, Strauss could just ignore it, but because we're both men it suddenly is a problem. That's not fair!" Derek shook his head in disbelief. Sure, he hadn't expected things to only go well, but this was ridiculous.

"Probably, but that's not the only reason. Strauss also is concerned that Reid might become a liability in the field," Hotch started and when Derek tried to protest again, he held his hand up to stop him from talking.

"Let me finish first. Reid's eyes might actually work to our advantage here, Morgan."

Derek tilted his head to the side and asked: "And how is that?"

He really had no idea how Reid's eye problems could be an advantage in any case. Morgan had seen what it had done to Spencer in the last few months and it had killed him every time he had held Spencer, while the young genius was crying himself to sleep after a bad day in his therapy.

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Hotch's voice brought him out of his thoughts and he listened to what else his boss had to say.

"I made a temporary deal with Strauss to keep Reid on the team for now, as long as he stays out of the field and essentially only helps with the profiles and the research. I know it's not a good solution, but at least it gives us the time to convince Strauss that the team needs Reid and that he is best suited to work with us," Aaron explained and Morgan felt relieved that at least Hotch was trying to have their backs.

"Well, given Spencer's current condition, I'm kind of glad to have an excuse to keep him out of the field without sounding too overprotective," Derek said, trying to see the good in the situation, or he would get so angry that he'd go to Strauss and tell her what he thought about all this and probably make the situation much worse for them.

Aaron smiled a little, even though it wasn't an entirely happy one. He looked directly at Morgan and the man knew that he was waiting for an explanation. His next question confirmed that.

"So, are you going to tell me why you came back so early? Or do I have to ask Reid?"

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Morgan took another deep breath. Of course he had expected the question and it wasn't that big of a secret why they were back already, well, at least most of it wasn't.

"Actually, we've been back for a week now," he began, ignoring Aaron's irritated look and continued before his boss could say something: "I know we should have told you, but we really needed to get settled in before you would all overwhelm Spencer, no matter if you do it because you care about us so much."

Hotch could understand that, because with the way Garcia and JJ had reacted, they really would have suffocated Reid and Morgan with their concern and mothering. But that really didn't answer the question he had asked.

"I can understand that and Garcia and the rest will understand it too, but that still doesn't explain why you're back already," he reminded Derek of the question he had asked before.

Morgan stiffened a little, just a small motion and if Hotch hadn't been trained to watch for those kind of reactions, he would have missed it.

"Well, the doc said that he has done everything he can for Spencer and now his eyes need to heal on their own. And he suggested that Spencer would feel better and heal faster if we came back, so here we are," Morgan said, trying to sound cheerful, but that really didn't fool Hotch. He knew there was more to the story.

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"So that's the version you're going to tell everybody outside of the team who asks, but I'm your boss and if something happened then I need to know about it, especially when you want to return to the team."

Hotch didn't really want to pressure Morgan into telling him, but he was worried about the two men and he wanted to help them. Morgan smiled a little.

"I knew I'd never be able to fool you, but Hotch, please just trust me that things are as good as they can be, now that we're back and if that changes I'm going to tell you everything," he promised, hoping that the Unit Chief would understand. Indeed Hotch nodded.

"Okay, for now and because I've known you for years now, I'll stop asking questions," Aaron gave in, before he added: "But Morgan, as you said, as soon as things change I want answers to all the questions I ask."

Morgan nodded his head.

"I promise to tell you, if it becomes necessary, Hotch." His voice was sincere, so Hotch would stop asking about whatever had made the two men come back earlier, for now.

But there was still one question he had to ask: "So, how much are Reid's eyes healed exactly?"

Morgan smiled at that.

"Well, the treatment has gone better than the doctor expected and Spencer can already see light and dark and even shapes sometimes. We're going to continue the rest of the treatment here, now that we don't need the specialist anymore. And as far as things look right now, there's about a 60 percent chance that Spencer's eyes will be as good as new as long as he's given time."

Hotch had to smile at that too and his tense posture relaxed a little.  
>"Well, that are good news," he said and Derek nodded in agreement. When they had left, the chances had been less than 20 percent, so the odds had increased a lot and that was always good news.<p>

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Again, there was a moment of silence between the two men and then Hotch questioned: "I assume that Reid won't be cleared for work any time soon, but when do you want to come back to work?"

Hotch asked the question for two reasons. First, they could really need Derek's experience back on the team and second that would maybe finally give him the chance to transfer McBright to another team.

Morgan shrugged his shoulders.  
>"Spencer and I haven't really talked about it yet, even though we talked about the fact that I'd return to the BAU even if he couldn't right away. Give me two or three days to further settle in, to unpack our stuff and make ourselves comfortable in our new house and to talk to Spencer about what we want to do now and then I can give you a definite answer."<p>

"Fair enough," Hotch agreed.

"We have to leave soon anyway, so you will have more than enough time to discuss things until we've caught the newest UnSub," he then added and then stood up from his chair, glad that Morgan now knew what was happening and where he and Spencer stood.

Morgan rose from his chair too and gave Hotch a slight smile.

"Thanks for having our backs, Hotch," he said gratefully and Aaron only shrugged.

"You both deserve it. And I'm glad that you're back and that Reid is doing better," he informed and the two men left the office.

"I'll go back to Spencer now. Good luck catching the perp," Morgan said and walked down the few steps into the bullpen and walked towards the break room.

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Hotch watched him go and then his eyes wandered to where Rossi, Prentiss and McBright were already waiting, ready to leave. He sighed deeply and he really hoped that things would soon return to normal, or as normal as they could be at the BAU.

But when he saw the look Hunter sent after Morgan, then he got the uneasy feeling that trouble was not too far away... and of course there was still the question why Spencer and Derek had really come back earlier than they had planned... maybe he should ask Rossi to call his friend in Germany and ask him if he knew something, but he had promised Morgan to stay away from it for the time being.

And besides, they had an UnSub to catch and when he returned, Hotch was going to have a long talk with Strauss... so he had a lot of things to take care of and whatever was going to happen was going to happen anyway. All he could do for Derek and Spencer, was to be there for them as much as he could.

With that resolve, Hotch called out to his now complete team: "Let's go, we can't waste any more time."

And the team sprung into action. They all agreed, the sooner they caught that guy, the less people he'd kill and they'd have the time to properly welcome Morgan and Spencer back properly...

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to be continued...


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** Wow, it's been quite some time since I updated this story. Do you even remember it? Well, I really hope you do, because I've finally gotten my inspiration back to continue this and I'd be more than happy if at least some of you are still interested in reading it *smiles sheepishly*

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Comments for this chapter would, of course, be most appreciated *puppy dog eyes*

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**Of course thank you to everybody who reviewed the last chapter *hugs you all* Your comments always make my day and mean so much to me *smiles***

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Please keep in mind that English is not my native language.

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**Disclaimer:** None of the CM characters belong to me… I just borrowed them for this little story… my OC'S do belong to me though… this story doesn't mean to offend anybody… this is just for fun… and not for money either...

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><p><strong>Chapter 3<strong>

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><p>.<p>

As soon as the door closed behind them after their return from the BAU, Reid gave a relieved sigh and leaned into the arms Morgan wrapped around his waist after he had leaned the cane against the wall beside the door.

"You okay, baby boy?" Derek wanted to know, because he could see the lines of tension all along Spencer's forehead. And in the last months he had come to know Reid inside and out, having been by his side through many ups and downs.

And Reid had realized that he could show weakness when he was with Derek and that the other man wouldn't judge him or think anything less of him. Spencer turned in his lover's arms and rested his head on Derek's shoulder, breathing in the other man's scent, because that always calmed him down.

"I'm not sure," he admitted and sighed slightly when one of Morgan's hands sneaked under his shirt and ran soothing circles over his back.

Morgan smiled slightly and gave Reid a kiss on the cheek.

"I didn't expect you to be okay, Spencer. I mean, today was a lot to take in and I fear there's a little more that I need to tell you," Derek said softly. He hadn't told Spencer about his talk with Hotch so far, because he wanted to do it in an environment where nobody would evesdrop and where Spencer was more comfortable.

And even though there were still many unpacked boxes in their new home, Morgan and Reid already felt comfortable and happy here, because they had bought it together. Sure, Spencer hadn't seen the house so far and Derek couldn't wait to give him the tour once his eyesight had recovered fully, but Morgan had described everything to him into the smallest detail, so Reid could form a picture in that incredible brain of his. And Reid had told him that it really didn't matter where they lived as long as they were together.

Sure, the line had been cheesy, but Derek had given Spencer a long kiss for it before he had carried the younger man into their new bedroom so they could celebrate their future together in the proper way.

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"I figured as much. Let me guess, Strauss isn't too happy with our relationship and wants to move one of us," Reid stated, removing his head from Derek's shoulder and separated a little from his lover, never leaving the safety of his lover's arms.

Morgan didn't even ask how Spencer knew. They were both profilers after all and damned good ones at that.

He chuckled dryly.

"No, she isn't, but Hotch is going to have our backs and is going to work on her. Right now it's not an issue and we should be okay when we get back to work," Morgan assured, because he knew one of Spencer's biggest fears was, that he had to leave the team once he returned to work. And Derek didn't doubt that Spencer would return to work, no matter if it took a few more months or maybe even a year.

Reid gave another relieved sigh and then he smiled slightly.

"Let's move this to the living room or Clooney might scratch through the door," he explained, because they had both heard the scratching of paws as soon as they had entered the house. Normally the dog would have come and greeted them at the door, but they had locked him in the living room for today, because Clooney was a little overexcited since everything in that house was new to him and Derek didn't want the dog to jump on Reid and maybe hurt him. They'd stop locking the dog in once he had settled down a little.

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"Probably a good idea," Morgan admitted and hand in hand the two walked the few steps down the small hallway of their new house to open the door. Morgan made sure to stand in front of Reid, which was a good thing, because as soon as the door was out of the way, Clooney nearly jumped on his two beloved humans, barking excitedly.

Morgan grinned and petted the dog's head as soon as he had calmed down a little. Clooney barked at Morgan once more and then, a lot calmer than before, he walked towards Reid, bumped against the young genius's hand, expecting to be petted too. Derek smiled proudly that Clooney had easily understood that Reid was more fragile than Derek and so had to be treated gentler and he was also proud that Clooney had become so protective of his lover and had accepted him into the family.

And Reid had let Clooney into his heart too and now petted the dog's head gently.

"Hey Clooney," he greeted the dog, a bright smile on his face, the serious conversation forgotten for now, replaced by happier feelings.

"I see you missed us," he added and Derek chuckled a little. He always loved watching Reid interact with Clooney, because it gave him a warm feeling to see that.

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"Don't worry, Clooney," Morgan said and petted his dog again. "Soon you won't be alone anymore when we're out," he promised. A little whistling sound from the other end of the living room, made him chuckle and he looked towards the huge cage they had had installed first thing after they had bought the house. It took up almost the whole wall of the living room so Einstein, Spock and little Spencey had more than enough space to play.

"Sorry little furballs, I of course didn't forget about you, but unfortunately Clooney can't really play with you, so he needs some other companions. You're three too after all," he explained while walking over to the cage to make sure that the three guinea-pigs had enough food and water.

Reid's chuckle made him turn around to watch his lover slowly make his way over to the couch, carefully guided by Clooney.

"I never would have thought that you'd take to the pigs that much," Spencer told him, reaching out with his hand to sit down on the couch.

Derek chuckled and answered: "Well, they are cute and you loved them, so they grew on me too."

He once again checked that the guinea-pigs had everything they needed and then he walked over to the couch to sit down beside his lover.

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The living-room, the kitchen and the bedroom were the only rooms in the house that they had already furnished and the shelves already filled with their things. The rest of the rooms, the two guest-bedrooms, the room that was going to be Derek's office, the small, comfortable room that was going to be Spencer's library and the gym, Derek had insisted they needed, was mostly unpacked boxes and half-built shelves.

But they were okay for now, even their bank-accounts were okay, no matter that the huge house they had bought was a little more expensive than they had originally thought. Spencer had saved a surprising lot of money he had earned with articles he had published and he had told Derek that he hadn't needed much before and Derek had also saved a lot, so they were okay.

No holidays or new cars for the next years, but Derek and Spencer were perfectly okay with that, because this was the house they had been looking for, no matter if Reid had not seen it yet.

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Another reason they had bought the house was, that it had a huge, beautiful backyard, surrounded by a high fence that gave them privacy and security and which had more than enough room for dogs to play. That had been important, because they'd have three dogs running around there soon and they needed the space when both Reid and Morgan went back to work.

They were not only the owner of three guinea-pigs now, but also of three dogs. It was the fault of their German doctor, who had also become a friend, and who had suggested to maybe get a guide-dog for Spencer, just in case he wouldn't get his full eyesight back.

And after some consideration they had agreed to get another dog, because, yes, Clooney was good at guiding Spencer around the house, but he wasn't trained fully. And even if Reid got his eyesight back, they could still love the new dog and Derek had been sure that Clooney would love to have another dog around to play when they were at work. So they had gotten some addresses and had gone to find the perfect dog, of course with Clooney in tow so that he could also approve of their newest family members too.

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And so they had stumbled upon a German Shepard that had taken an immediate liking to Reid and who had already been in training. But nobody had wanted him so far, because he wasn't a pure-breed but found abandoned at a highway when he was just a little puppy and had been taken in by someone who trained the dogs as guide-dogs. And it was also a problem, because with the German Shepard came a little extra. A cute little female Welsh Corgi that had been found with the German Shepard and the two were inseparable. Derek had been skeptical, because they already had Clooney. But Reid had fallen in love immediately and Clooney had accepted the two dogs almost from first bark and what was Derek to do against four sets of puppy-dog-eyes? So they had adopted the two dogs and Reid and the dog had started their training together. They would continue here once they had settled a little more.

.

"When can we get Luke and Leia from the shelter?" Spencer asked when Derek settled down on the couch beside him, putting a hand on Reid's knee, mindful of Clooney, who was lying on the couch on Spencer's other side, his head resting in Spencer's lap. Derek shook his head fondly and he still couldn't believe that he'd allowed Spencer to name the two dogs like that, but then again, it was cute and had suited them, so he hadn't objected too much.

"In two days then the quarantine is over," he explained. Luke and Leia hadn't been able to come home with them immediately, because someone had screwed up the paperwork and so they had had to stay at the shelter so they could be checked over to make sure they were disease-free and their papers had been completed. Morgan and Spencer had visited their two newest additions to the family everyday, just so they knew that their new owners hadn't abandoned them and would still take them home once they were allowed to. And Clooney missed his new brother and sister too, which only made him more excited every time the door opened, because he always hoped that Luke and Leia would be with Morgan and Reid.

Spencer nodded and leaned against Morgan again.

"Finally... and then we're really home," he murmured, the lines of tension on his forehead growing less.

.

But then he remembered that they had started a much more serious conversation after they had entered their house.

"So, what has Hotch told you exactly? JJ and Garcia wouldn't tell me much. They were busy talking about the cases they have solved and about the new guy on the team."

There was a slight disdain in his voice when he mentioned this Hunter guy and Morgan couldn't really blame him. He'd gotten a strange feeling in his stomach too from the temporary team-member. But he thought that it might change once he'd gotten to know the other man a little better.

He kissed Spencer's temple and explained everything that Hotch had told him and ended with: "And Hotch wants to know when I want to go back to work."

As soon as the words were out, he felt Spencer stiffen beside him and Morgan knew exactly why. If Morgan would go back to work, then Reid would be alone and ever since that damned incident that had made them come back earlier, he knew that Spencer felt especially vulnerable when he was totally alone. But he always tried to hide that he was feeling like that.

Derek put his arms around the younger man and pulled him close, giving him a gentle kiss.

"If you want, I'll stay home as long as you can't work and only go back when you do too," he immediately suggested and he was ready to do that too, no matter how much he really wanted to go back to work now that they were back in the States. Morgan had missed his work, but Spencer was more important, so he would be able to live without it for a little while longer.

Spencer gave him a small smile and then he answered: "Please don't do that, Derek. I know how much you want to go back to work, because I want to go back just as much, but I know I need to have a little more patience until I can be an asset to the team again."

.

Then Reid straightened his shoulders and tried to look as brave as he could muster.

"Besides, I need to get over this and need to learn that I'm save here. I mean, I'll have three dogs around to protect me, so I won't be alone," he said, wondering if it was more to convince Morgan or to assure himself.

"Baby boy, you don't need to pretend, not with me..." Morgan started, not sure what to say, but he was silenced by Spencer's lips on his.

When they broke the gentle kiss, Reid smiled, a real smile this time.

"Please Derek, go back to work, well as soon as we have unpacked all the stuff and I know my way around the house, because I don't need another broken leg," he said, humor evident in his voice. Morgan chuckled and ran a hand through Spencer's hair. His boyfriend was right. They needed to go back to normal, even though he too felt a little uneasy to just leave Reid alone and one thing was for sure, even if he went back to work, he wouldn't fly out with the team for quite some time to make sure that he'd be home with Spencer every evening.

That would make the transition back to normal easier and it would help them both forget what had made them come back earlier. And besides, what could that bastard do to Spencer here? He was an ocean away after all and in a prison...

But still, there was this uneasy feeling in the pit of Derek's stomach that just wouldn't go away...

.

to be continued...

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So, did you like the chapter? I hope it's not too OOC or anything and you can live with the explanation about the two new dogs in Spencer's and Derek's life, no matter if it's an improbable one... *smiles* It was a little harder than I would have liked to get back into the story *sigh*

But I hope I can have the new chapter out much sooner than this one...


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